


SOS - Fallen

by Kookykrumbs



Series: Fate Binds Us - Missing Scenes [6]
Category: Terminator (Movies), Terminator - All Media Types, Terminator Dark Fate, Terminator: Dark Fate
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, Grace disobeys Dani, Snowed In, Wilderness Survival
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-12
Updated: 2020-02-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:08:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22674601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kookykrumbs/pseuds/Kookykrumbs
Summary: Grace and Dani are in a secured, loving relationship.  They're on a routine mission when their aircraft is shot down by an HK.  With them being the only survivors, they'll need to trek through a harsh Canadian winter and find shelter and help before Dani's injuries kill her.  Their predicament will test their love like never before.
Relationships: Grace Harper & Dani Ramos, Grace Harper/Dani Ramos
Series: Fate Binds Us - Missing Scenes [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1608526
Comments: 8
Kudos: 93





	SOS - Fallen

**Author’s Notes:** This takes place approximately a month after the events of my last installment, Understanding Silence. Again, this fic takes place in the same universe as my **_Fate Binds Us_** fic, but this can be read as a standalone. Enjoy!

****

** SOS Fallen **

****

_Dani sat in her favorite coffee shop, nursing her favorite hot mocha in her hands. She was leaned against the window watching people from all walks of life go about their everyday business. It was early in the morning, but she didn’t mind. She’d always been a morning person. There was a beep on her iPhone, and she looked down. Her brother, Diego, texted her letting her know his new music video had gone “viral” with 628 likes. She couldn’t help but chuckle at how such simple things made him happy._

_Suddenly, hands covered Dani’s eyes from behind. She knew who it was before she even said anything. “Guess who?”_

_“I would never have to guess. I could be deaf and blind, but I’d know you anywhere, mi amor,” Dani said, turning around and kissing Grace._

_“Sorry, I’m late. I had to stay a bit after work,” Grace said._

_“I wish you’d give up that graveyard shift, Grace. It’s not healthy for you.”_

_“I will, I promise. It’s just two more paycheques until we can put a down payment on our new place.”_

_“I know, I can’t wait,” Dani said, excitedly. “Oh, by the way, I was thinking-”_

_“Never a good sign,” Grace said, jokingly._

_Dani just gave her a sardonic look. “Anyway, I was thinking that since you have tonight off, maybe after you get some sleep, you can join me for dinner with my family so we can announce our engagement?”_

_Grace smiled, obviously loving the idea. “I think tonight would be perfect. Honestly, a part of me wondered if you were getting cold feet…”_

_“Are you crazy?! I love you more than anything, Grace. I’m so proud to be able to tell people you’re mine.”_

_“Possessive, aren’t you?” Grace said, kissing her playfully on her nose._

_“Well, I’m yours too, so it’s even,” Dani said, giggling. “Anyway, you must be exhausted after your long shift. Come on, I’ll drop you home.”_

_Dani and Grace both got up from their table and said their goodbyes to the regular barista, Juan. Hand in hand they walked across the parking lot to Dani’s car. They were mere feet from it when a voice called out to them from their left. They turned, surprised to see it was Dani’s father._

_“Papi, what are you doing here?” Dani asked in Spanish._

_But her father didn’t answer. His right hand turned into a liquid tar-like form and transformed into a Glock pistol. He aimed it straight at Dani._

_“NO!” Grace screamed, covering Dani with her body._

_One, two, three bullets ripped into Grace. Dani screamed. So much blood. She dropped to her knees cradling a dying Grace._

_“Grace! Oh, please, God, no! Grace!!! Look at me, look at me! You’re going to make it.” Dani looked around her. “HELP! Somebody help us!”_

_But instead of help, Dani looked up to see her father morph into the Rev-9 and point his gun straight at her head. BAM!!!_

Dani shot up out of bed, gasping for air. Soaked in sweat, her eyes frantically darted all around the dark room. Her heart was pounding. It was only after a few seconds that she realized strong arms held her in an embrace whispering words of comfort in her ear.

“It’s okay, Dani. It was just a dream. You’re okay, I’m right here.”

“Grace?” Dani asked, her voice sounding small.

“Yeah, it’s me, I’m right here.”

“Thank God, you’re alright!” Dani said, pulling Grace tighter to her.

Grace reached across Dani and turned on their bedroom lamp. Dani squinted at the sudden source of light. She looked at the nightstand to see it was 3:20 in the morning. Finding her bearings and realizing it had just been a dream, Dani started breathing easier.

“I’m so sorry I woke you, Grace.”

“Don’t be sorry. You know you can wake me up anytime,” Grace said, kissing her on the forehead.

Dani sighed. “This is the third time this week. I should probably start sleeping in my own room again, at least until these nightmares pass.”

“Hell, no!” Grace said, holding her tighter.

“I don’t want you reporting to work exhausted because I’m keeping you up at night,” Dani argued.

“And you think I’m going to sleep well without you by my side?” Grace said, wryly.

Dani sighed in resignation. She had a feeling she wasn’t going to win this particular argument. Knowing Grace, if she moved back to her room, she’d just follow her anyway. Then they’d both be stuck on a smaller bed.

“Well, let’s just hope these dreams go away. I don’t really know what’s causing them.” 

But Dani did have a feeling she knew what was causing them. Her dreams always started the same. She was living the life with Grace she’d always dreamed of. It was a normal life with the people she loved alive and thriving. But it always ended the same way, with Grace dead in her arms. These nightmares started shortly after she and Grace confessed their feelings to each other and truly became a couple. She had a feeling her subconscious was expressing the fear she harbored deep within her that this newfound happiness she had wouldn’t… couldn’t last.

“You’re not having regrets, are you?” Grace asked tentatively.

“What are you talking about?” Dani asked.

“I just couldn’t help but notice that your nightmares started up around the time we … got together,” Grace said.

“Oh my God, no! Never think that, Grace! I’ve never been happier.”

And Dani realized that that was true. She’d never been happier. Not even before Judgment Day. And that’s probably why these nightmares were invading her sleep. After her Grace had died, she never thought happiness would ever be in her grasp again.

“Are you sure?”

Dani nodded vigorously. “I love you so much, Grace. Please don’t ever doubt that. I may be the commander, but just like everyone else I have nightmares from when Legion took over the world. Just like everyone still alive, I lost people very dear to me. For the most part, I’ve been successful in suppressing those memories. But from time to time, they do creep up on me.”

“Okay…” Grace said, gently pulling her back down to lie on the bed.

Grace leaned across the bed to turn off the lamp on the nightstand. She then molded her body to Dani’s holding her close. Dani started to doze off again when Grace broke the silence.

“Are the rumors true, Dani?”

Dani opened her eyes, wondering what Grace was referring to. Was there a rumor around the base regarding their relationship?

“Rumors about what?”

“They’re kind of old rumors, but I was just wondering…. Did you lose someone… in the war?”

“Who didn’t lose someone in the war?” Dani said wryly, trying to avoid the topic of losing Grace altogether.

“No, I meant…. A lover… Was there someone you lost?” Grace asked.

Not a lover… they hadn’t had the time to become that. Dani didn’t quite know how to address the question. She was definitely not going to tell Grace about her other self. She didn’t want Grace’s death to become some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy, and that very well could become the case if this Grace knew about it. But she didn’t want to deny it either. She owed it to Grace’s memory and sacrifice.

“My life before Judgment Day was another life altogether. I’ve loved and lost, which is an experience not unique to anyone. I love you and only you, Grace. You have no competition. Don’t worry about my past.”

Grace sighed, obviously wanting to know more. “I wish you’d talk about your past more, Dani. Sometimes I feel like you don’t want me to know about it.”

Dani’s first instinct was to tell Grace she had no secrets from her. But then that would be a lie, and she didn’t want to lie to Grace. She quickly debated about lies of omission then told her mind to shut up. It was for the best.

“I led such a sheltered and content life before Judgment Day. Even being so far removed from those events, it’s still incredibly painful to talk about them. And I’m not saying my experience was any worse than anyone else’s, but this is just how I’ve learned to cope. I try not to revisit it.”

Dani hoped that Grace would accept her explanation and leave it at that. There really was no way for Dani to talk about her past and not bring up the assassination attempt on her, or Grace who had gone back in time to rescue her. And how her beloved Abuelita, Sarah saved them, and how Carl, a terminator himself, helped them overcome the Rev-9. It was only a few days, but those few days changed her life forever.

“I’m sorry I brought up painful memories for you, Dani. I guess a part of me was jealous that I could never compete with a ghost,” Grace said.

“You are my world, Grace. Everything I do, I do so you can have a better future. Don’t worry about my past. Because the future is all that matters. _You’re_ all that matters.”

That seemed to be enough for Grace as she kissed Dani and the two soon fell asleep in each other’s arms.

**A few days later**

Dani watched from the co-pilot’s seat as Grace flew their Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk over Calgary, Alberta. Behind them were three more choppers, each carrying eight personnel. They were on their way to destroy one of Legion’s bases in Edmonton. It wasn’t an outright assault they had planned. Instead, they planned to infiltrate the base and strategically place C4s that would cripple Legion’s assembly line.

Reports, as well as surveillance, from Major Carter’s team showed that the base in Edmonton was an assembly plant for new Rev models. They were dubbed Rev-7s and intel reported that it was a hybrid model capable of splitting into two distinct parts, both equally capable of moving independently. Dani knew all too well that this Rev-7 would be the predecessor of the Rev-9, making this mission all the more critical.

“Dani, you look nervous, everything okay?” Grace asked.

“Yeah… I just have a bad feeling…” Dani said, unsure where the bad feeling was coming from, which made her all the more nervous.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you,” Grace said, squeezing her hand.

Dani could only nod. She took the radio and alerted the team through their encrypted communication. “We’re 45 minutes from our destination. Everyone get ready. Over.”

“Understood, Commander. Over,” the radio crackled back.

Dani had just returned the radio to its base when a loud whirring sound began descending on them becoming louder and louder. 

“Shit! We’ve been spotted. HK above us!” Grace yelled.

“Defensive maneuvers, everyone!” Lieutenant Nguyen said through the radio.

There weren’t supposed to be any HKs patrolling the area. Even if their intel had been wrong, their choppers were equipped with cloaking devices designed to make them invisible to radar. As talented as Dani’s pilots all were, they were no match for a fully armed HK. They were all sitting ducks.

Dani grabbed the radio. “Everyone retreat! That’s an order!”

But it was too late, the HK began shooting at them. Dani watched in horror as one of her choppers crashed straight to the forest below bursting into a ball of flames. Grace’s friend, Simon, had been on that chopper.

Dani turned to Grace who was trying to shake the HK from their tail. She could see tears pooling in her eyes, no doubt she knew her friend just died. But they had a bigger problem on their hands. Dani heard a loud bang and she looked out the window to see another of her choppers explode in mid-air taking a missile dead-on. 

She couldn’t see the third chopper anywhere. She prayed to God that it had been able to retreat. But they were still in big trouble. Grace still couldn’t shake the HK on their tail. She swerved left, then right, she dropped the chopper dramatically, then pulled up again. Dani could feel her stomach jump to her throat. But it was no use.

The HK hit their chopper right on the tail. They were on fire and spinning out of control. They only had a few seconds left. Dani’s last thought was that this was how she’d die. But she was jarred right out of her thoughts as they crashed hard into the ground. Because of the steep angle and the abundance of snow, their chopper didn’t explode on impact. It tumbled violently like a pinwheel until it hit several trees. The last thing Dani remembered was seeing fire all around her, then blacking out.

Dani had no idea how much time had passed when she woke up. The first thing she realized, however, was that she was soaking wet. She looked around her, and all there was were trees and white snow. She tried getting up and realized her leg was bound in a splint. There was a sharp pain in her side. She looked down and saw a scrap piece of metal lodged between her ribs. She decided not to pull it out lest she bled more. She decided to ignore it. The chopper was nowhere to be found. Grace! Where was she?! Dani was about to yell for her when she heard the crunching of snow from behind.

“Dani, you’re awake!” Grace said, running and dropping to her knees next to Dani.

She took Dani’s face in her hands and kissed her. Dani could feel the relief pouring from her. Grace took out her mini flashlight and was shining the thing right in her eyes.

“I’m okay, Grace, please stop that, it hurts my eyes.”

“I was so worried,” Grace said. “I had no idea how hurt you were. You were completely unconscious. Nothing I did woke you up. I was worried that you might have had a brain bleed.”

“I’ll be okay. Where’s our chopper? Our team?” Dani asked, as she tried to hide the scrap piece of metal lodged in her side from Grace. It was fortunate it blended with the color of her jacket.

“Dead. Most of them probably died when the missile hit the tail. Anybody else who survived the impact died in the explosion.”

“Explosion?”

“You don’t remember? Our chopper blew up just moments after I dragged you out. The fire eventually got to the fuel. We’re the only survivors.”

“Dios mío!” Dani gasped, making the sign of the cross for the souls of her lost soldiers. 

As their commander, she knew she’d be carrying the burden of their deaths for the rest of her life. Never mind that without knowing the future, there was nothing she could have done differently. She was their leader, and she had led them to their deaths.

“Don’t blame yourself, Dani. This wasn’t your fault,” Grace said, as if reading her mind.

Dani didn’t respond, not wanting to get into an argument with Grace at the moment. Instead, she looked around, surveying their surroundings. They seemed to be in a forest of some kind. They were well dressed for the snow and sub-zero temperatures, but they were also wet which didn’t bode well for them. Dani had no idea how far they were from help. But she knew one thing; they couldn’t stay put. They had to move.

“I couldn’t scavenge anything from the chopper, unfortunately,” Grace said. “But at least water won’t be a problem. The snow should be fine to consume. But we have no idea when we’ll find help.”

“Don’t worry about it. I give you permission to eat me if we can’t find food,” Dani said, wryly.

“Not funny.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to get morbid,” Dani said, reminding herself she was still the commander and it was her job to keep things together. “Can you find me a walking stick? We need to get moving.”

After several minutes of scavenging, Grace found her a nice piece of wood Dani could lean on. They then began their trek south. They figured that the more distance they could put between them and Legion’s base, the better off they’d be. 

They’d been walking for hours and still all Dani could see was white in front and behind them. That, and more trees. She was in so much pain from her broken leg, the pounding in her head which she had no doubt was a concussion, as well as the deep wound where the piece of metal was sticking out of her side. Dani willed her pounding heart to slow down. This was not the time to panic, although she and Grace both knew their situation was pretty dire. They had no food, no shelter and they were in the middle of a Canadian winter. And although their uniforms were designed for sub-zero temperatures, they were still losing a lot of body heat through their heads.

They walked in silence for several more hours. Dani could feel herself fading. It’s not that she wasn’t fit. She wouldn’t, under normal circumstances, be tired just yet. She took excellent care of her health and took her fitness seriously. But she was very injured, and it was taking a toll on her. The more they walked, the more she had to figure out a way to convince Grace to leave her behind. She was slowing them down too much.

“Dani, you okay?” Grace asked, obviously noting the bad shape she was in. 

But then again, Dani was so close to collapsing that Helen Keller probably would have noticed she wasn’t doing well.

“You need to go on without me, Grace. I’m only slowing you down. With no food or supplies, we won’t last very long out here. You need to leave me and find help,” Dani said.

“I think you’ve hit your head harder than I thought. Because you’re out of your mind if you think I’m going to leave you behind.”

“I’m not joking, Grace!”

“Neither am I, Dani!”

“Don’t be stubborn! Leaving me behind and finding help is our best chance! That is an order!”

“I’m not leaving you. You can court martial me or whatever punishment it is you give for insubordination but I’m not leaving you behind. And quite frankly, in your condition, you couldn’t make me even if you tried. So, just get that thought right out of your head.”

“God damn it, Grace! How does it make sense for both of us to die? There’s a very good chance you’ll at least survive if you leave me.”

“Not happening! Besides, there’s a good chance one of our choppers was able to escape while that HK was on our tail. Let’s pray that they got back to base and let the rest of the resistance know. I have no doubt Major Carter is organizing a search and rescue for us right now.”

“You’re assuming they know we’re still alive,” Dani mumbled.

“Since when were you the negative Nancy?”

“For God’s sake, listen to reason, Grace! This forest is vast! We have no idea when help will get to us if it ever gets to us. We are more likely to die of starvation out here before help arrives. We can’t even start a fire for fear Legion will see it.”

“Just stop talking and save your energy,” Grace said, obviously annoyed that Dani wouldn’t drop the subject of leaving her behind.

“For fuck’s sake, Grace! Leave me behind! You can come back for me once you’ve found help… and food!”

“And what if you’re attacked by some wild animal out here all by yourself? What if Legion sends terminators on foot to make sure there were no survivors? Who’ll protect you? At least I still have my Glock pistol and my knife,” Grace argued.

Dani glared at Grace. “Your gun won’t create food for us. It can’t transport us. It’ll barely slow down a terminator and it certainly won’t keep us warm.”

“Maybe not, but my body heat certainly will,” Grace said, grinning impishly. 

Dani rolled her eyes. “I’m being serious, Grace.”

“So am I. I’m not leaving you. End of discussion.”

Dani wanted to scream in frustration. Damn this woman! She was the most stubborn creature on earth! 

“I swear, Grace, if we survive this, I’m putting you on janitor duty, and I’m stripping you of your rank!”

“You can strip me of anything anytime, my love,” Grace said, obviously knowing Dani wasn’t going to do any of those things.

Grace tried not to laugh at Dani’s obvious anger at not getting her way. It wasn’t often Grace won arguments against Dani, but when it came to her safety, Grace would never give an inch. After another hour or so of walking, Grace observed Dani beside her. 

Dani looked pale and her breathing was labored. She had become even more pale than she had been just an hour before. It wasn’t just her leg or concussion seeming to cause her pain. And that’s when Grace noticed it. There was a trail of blood behind them.

“What the hell, Dani?! You’re bleeding?”

“It’s… nothing,” Dani barely managed to get out.

Fuck! Grace was beyond angry at herself. How did she miss this earlier? She’d been so worried about Dani’s head injury and her broken leg she failed to notice. The shade from the trees also made it darker making the trail of blood hard to spot. But now that they were on a more open plain, the moon shining down on them made the trail of blood stand out on the fresh white powder of snow.

“How long have you been bleeding out? Let me see!” Grace said, angrily. 

She opened Dani’s jacket to find her entire side soaked in blood. What was frightening was that despite how much blood there was, it would be worse if she tried removing the scrap piece of metal from her side. 

“There’s nothing you can do, Grace,” Dani said, weakly pushing her hand away. “Now, can you please see reason, and leave me behind?”

“Well gee, now I’m even more inclined to leave you alone now that I know you’re bleeding!”

But Dani didn’t have the strength to even acknowledge her sarcasm. “I don’t think I can make it, Grace…” Dani started swaying. Before she could take another step, her knees buckled. Grace quickly caught her in her arms.

“Dani!” 

Grace held Dani close to her. She tried to push down the panic overwhelming her. Dani’s breathing was becoming more and more shallow. Grace was so angry at Dani at that moment. Why did she hide her injury from her? But then again, what difference would it have made? Maybe Dani didn’t tell her because she thought there’d be a better chance of Grace agreeing to leave her if she felt she could manage on her own. Well, if Dani believed that Grace would leave her for any reason, then she didn’t know her at all.

Grace paused, took a deep breath and tried assessing their entire situation. They were both completely exposed to the elements. Dani needed medical help, they needed food and shelter. But Grace had to deal with the most immediate problem, which was that they were in the middle of nowhere. The first thing she needed to do was get them shelter because without some form of warmth, it wouldn’t be long before they died from the elements.

But looking at Dani, Grace knew she had nothing left in her. She probably couldn’t walk another dozen meters. Grace could easily put Dani on her back and walk for many miles, she was fit enough. But that sharp piece of metal stuck between Dani’s ribs posed a problem. Jostling her over her shoulder could potentially, most likely, make things worse. Grace had no choice but to lift Dani with both arms in front of her.

Deciding that was the only option available to her, Grace put one arm around Dani’s back, the other under her knees and lifted her. Dani, relatively speaking, was not heavy by any stretch of the imagination. That being said, she was also wet, and she still tipped the scale at about ninety-eight pounds or so. And with Grace’s arms bearing Dani’s entire weight for miles ahead, well, that would tax even the fittest man…. And Grace was just one woman. But she was one woman who loved the precious weight in her arms more than anything.

“Grace, this is ridiculous. Put me down. You can’t possibly carry me for miles on end. It’s unsustainable. You need to leave me behind,” Dani argued. But Grace could tell she didn’t have much strength left with how weakly she spoke.

Grace walked in silence for several miles. Each step she took felt like it would be her last one. She was beyond exhausted, but she kept putting one foot in front of the other. For the love of Dani, she had to make it. Her arms burned. She was forced to put Dani down several times, but she quickly picked her right back up after a few minutes of resting. Grace was so tired, she couldn’t even answer Dani’s protests anymore, which themselves eventually died down. This frightened Grace more as that meant Dani was fading. 

Grace’s legs were numb. Her lungs burned with each breath she took. The high elevation also didn’t help matters. Aside from their breathing, all she could hear was the trees creaking in the wind. Their uniforms were very well designed, but they were still wet and clinging to their bodies, Dani’s especially. If she had to guess the temperature, it was well below ten. The wind chill made it feel like zero. If they couldn’t find shelter, Dani could very well die in her arms.

And Grace wouldn’t survive losing Dani. But more than that, she wouldn’t want to. Grace shook her head, trying to push that thought away. It wasn’t the time nor place to scare herself with thoughts of losing the woman she loved. But despite her best efforts, the thoughts remained somewhere in the back of her mind. It made her near sick to her stomach and made thinking straight incredibly difficult.

“Grace, please. Leave me… save yourself,” Dani pleaded.

Relief overwhelmed Grace. Dani was still conscious. She was too exhausted to acknowledge Dani, but it gave her some newfound strength. After another mile, Grace saw something before her that she had to blink a few times to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating.

“Dani, look! Just ahead!” Grace said, excitedly.

The excitement in Grace’s voice had Dani feeling hopeful before she even found the strength to lift her head from Grace’s chest. At first, she didn’t quite recognize what she was looking at. Then it dawned on her that before them was some sort of line shack. Unbelievable! It was in the middle of nowhere. But then again, line shacks had been designed to be built in remote places. But it still looked like it was at least half a mile away. And Dani had a feeling that Grace was running on fumes. It was also, to their bad luck, on an uphill slope.

“Put me down, Grace. Run up there and see what’s in the shack,” Dani said, her teeth chattering from the cold.

“No. We’re going together or not at all,” Grace said.

“But Grace… You’ll never make the climb with me in your arms,” Dani argued. “You won’t make it.”

“Watch me,” Grace said, holding Dani even tighter.

When you were being carried in the arms of the woman you loved, Dani determined, the thoughts that crossed your mind were as bumpy and jolting as the ride. The way to the shack was dangerously steep and hazardously slippery. There was simply no road or path carved out for them. The climb over boulders and loose rock that rolled out from under Grace’s feet was simply unforgiving. Several times, Dani was sure they’d both go down, but each time, Grace managed to keep her balance. There was just no way Grace could sustain the pace… Yet she did.

Dani breathed a sigh of relief once they reached the top of the ridge where the ground became less steep, a little more evened out. But even then, Grace stumbled with the weight of her in her arms. Dani begged her again to put her down. But Grace didn’t speak. Not even to tell her to shut up. It twisted Dani’s heart as she suspected that Grace didn’t even have the breath anymore. She was beyond terrified that Grace would push herself beyond her limits until she dropped. And as deeply as she loved Grace, she’d never be able to carry her.

Burning tears made its way down Dani’s cheeks and quickly froze there. She could feel Grace’s exhaustion in her very bones. She was killing herself for Dani. Grace’s trembling practically engulfed her. She felt the weariness in Grace like it was her own. Each thump of Grace’s heart felt like a countdown to Dani. How much longer could she keep going? Yet she kept going, one step, then another, then another. Dani closed her eyes and prayed the line shack wasn’t much farther.

Finally, Grace stopped and swayed a bit on her feet. Dani nearly wept tears of joy when she saw the dark silhouette of the shack just several dozen feet before them. She stared at the dark outline of the building, praying that Grace would have the strength to make those last few meters. Holding Dani just as tight as she did from the beginning, Grace walked several more agonizing steps. And then, finally, they stood before the entrance of the line shack.

“Made it.” Grace barely managed to get out.

Grace tried the door of the shack, and lady luck seemed to be smiling upon them as it wasn’t locked. They were able to easily let themselves in. Grace bolted the door behind them. Immediately, the loud howling of the wind ceased, and the newfound silence was almost deafening.

Grace gently put Dani down on a cot against the wall on the far end of the shack. Dani looked up at her lover for a moment. The lack of color in Grace’s cheeks, combined with the lack of focus in her eyes, frightened Dani. She didn’t look well at all. Her breathing was shallow, and she looked unsteady on her feet. Before Dani could react, Grace collapsed.

_To be continued…_

**Author’s Notes:** The continuation of this is already up, it's titled Battered But Whole. Just click on 'Next work' to read it. And if you guys just want to drop me a msg, feel free to e-mail me at kooky.krumbs@yahoo.com 


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